A/N: Hello there everyone! First off, I just want to say thank you for all the support and positive reviews you've given me so far. I'll try to continue on the hype.
Before we begin, I have an announcement. I plan to make this a short story, encompassing the 5-part Darkness Rises storyline from Canon, before moving on to the rest of season 1 in a separate story, does that make sense? Right now, I want to make this an origin for Jack and how he becomes the Spider-Man we know and love, with his own spin on it. Because, in case you haven't noticed, he's not Spider-Man yet, not really. Speaking of differences from Peter Parker, there's something that will make Jack unique from most Spider-Man that I'll reveal in this chapter.
I do not own Spider-Man or Transformers Prime. They are works of Marvel comics and Hasbro.
Let's begin.
Spider's Rising Part Two:
Flashback - Six Months Earlier
15-year-old Jack Darby was excited to go to school today.
Normally, he'd dread the thought of going to school. While he held no hate for the institution itself, he dreaded having to interact with his peers. While most left him alone due to his status as a wallflower, there was this one kid in particular, Vince, who was a pain.
For some reason, the bully took great pleasure in targeting Jack specifically. Why? Maybe because of his status as a nerd. Maybe it was to satisfy his ego and prove his superiority. Or maybe it's because Jack shared homeroom with the prettiest girl in school. Honestly, Jack didn't know or care. He just wanted to be left alone.
But not even Vince could ruin this day for him. Sophomore year was ending, and with it came a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Recently in the science community, a major chemical research company had found a new type of material, and from what Jack read, it could be a new element that they could place on the periodic table. Such a discovery guaranteed fame for anyone who discovered it.
And to top it off, they were doing the first public showing of their research in Jasper, Nevada of all places. Even Jack couldn't believe it, cause he, like most residents and tourists to the small town, didn't think it held much significance. But that's when they revealed that the new mineral was mined just outside city limits.
And his science class was the one selected to view it, having the highest grades in the school mostly thanks to Jack. Being one of the first to witness such a breakthrough in the sciences, made Jack tremble with excitement, fumbling with his glasses in an attempt to calm down. He always had bad eyesight, probably another reason why Vince bullied him.
But he turned all those negative thoughts out as he focused on the present. His biology teacher, Dr. Curt Conners, a tall blonde man who had lost his arm in military service, lead them to the exhibit where a group of scientists. A large white tarp was draped over something that Jack could've sworn was glowing underneath.
"Welcome future scientists." One of the scientists in a lab coat said as he greeted the class. "Whose ready to be amazed?"
"I am!" Jack shouted in excitement as he raised his hand.
The gymnasium went silent as everyone stared dumbfounded at the awkward boy, some laughing at his outburst. Jack let out a small chuckle of embarrassment as he rubbed the back of his head, wishing the ground would swallow him whole then and there. Was he not supposed to say anything?
"I like the enthusiasm, young man." The Scientist said encouragingly as he focused on the class. "Now I'm sure you all are wondering what it is that has been hiding in your small town that caused such an upheaval in the science community."
None of them did, except Jack. But he learned his lesson from before and kept quiet, though nodded his head vigorously.
"Whoo, tough crowd huh?" The scientist joked before he moved to grab the large white blanket. "Let's see you try to hide your surprise after you see this!" With a mighty tug, he pulled the blanket away… to reveal something that took Jack's breath away.
It's… It's…
"It's a glowing blue rock?" Vince who, unfortunately, had been in his science class commented, clearly unimpressed as he stared at the supposedly history-changing discovery. Most of the students agreed with him.
But Jack? Jack was mesmerized. As he gazed upon the glowing blue rock locked in a metal container with see-through glass, he was almost hypnotized by what he saw. The bright blue glow, seem alluring, tempting him to come closer to the rock. He took several steps forward before Dr. Conners stopped him with his prosthetic hand. That brought him out of his trace as the Scientist continued.
"I know it doesn't seem like much, but trust me, there's more to this 'glowing blue rock' than meets the eye." A collective groan came from the students, even Jack. While he knew such a statement could be true for most things, it still sounded way too cheesy.
"While it may not look like much, this discovery will change the world." The Scientist said with confidence. "From just a rock this size alone, the energy it's giving off is higher than any known power source on the planet, bearing nuclear energy. Imagine how much power there could be if we found a larger sample."
"But that's not all." The Scientist continued as he waved for the students to follow him. "We've discovered the mineral could also be liquefied and refined into a source of fuel, much more clean and environmentally safe than gasoline."
"However," The Scientist's expression turned grim, "We also learned the mineral is highly combustible. One this size could easily level this entire school." At that, everyone took one big step back, even Jack. While he was fascinated, he wasn't exactly keen on blowing up. The scientist saw their fear and gave a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, this case is made from some of the strongest materials in the world. Not even a whole package of C4 could break through the container."
That seemed to calm most of them down. "But that's all scratching the surface of what this new mineral can do." The Scientist continued, his enthusiasm returning. "Through extensive study, we've hypothesized that this mineral can be used for human enhancement."
Jack's mind was blown. Energy and fuel sources were one thing, but for this blue crystal-like mineral to be able to enhance humans as well? Such a thing was unheard of. And it seems Dr. Connors was just as fascinated, a strange gleam in his eyes.
"Now don't get your hopes up. Don't expect the second coming of Captain America to come from this rock anytime soon." The scientist joked. "It's way too early for human trials, so we need to start small and work our way up. Which brings us to the finale."
He then brought the class to a column full of display cases, 15 in total. Inside was a nice cozy habitat made for small organisms. Those organisms being…
"Spiders?" Jack voiced aloud.
"Why would you use some tiny insects for this?" Vince questioned as he stared in confusion at the faintly blue glowing spiders.
"Arachnids." Vince turned to look at Jack, who looked away after he realized he had tried to correct his bully. "Spiders aren't insects, they're arachnids. Big difference." Some students laughed, causing Vince to narrow his eyes at the nerd.
"Correct young man. Spiders are arachnids." The Scientist said, bringing the attention back to him. "And to answer the tall fellow's question, did you know that the common household spider has adapted to survive most environments, including the ability to self-heal? With this ability, we theorize that the spiders will be able to survive any harmful radiation that may come when the mineral is injected into a human. In theory."
"In theory?" Connors asked.
"These fifteen are only the first batch. But hopefully, after a few more trials, we'll be able to take humanity to the next stage of evolution."
"There's fourteen," Sierra said.
The Scientist blinked. "Pardon?"
She then pointed to one display that seemed empty. "One's missing."
The Scientist then took a closer look at the display and indeed saw that there was no spider present. However, he didn't seem worried. "Ah, it's probably just camouflaged. Did you all know some spiders can camouflage themselves like chameleons?"
However, the scientist couldn't be more wrong. Cause above them, hiding in the ceiling, already having spun its trademark web, was the glowing blue spider. It had escaped after camouflaging itself while its captors tried to feed it. As it stared down at the group of humans, its eight eyes zeroed in on one in particular, the one who just raised his hand higher for it to reach.
"Is it okay if I can take some pictures?" Jack asked after the scientist finished explaining with a raised hand.
"Go right ahead young man, just don't share it with anyone else if you can. Wait until we publish our findings." The Scientist informed him. Jack grinned as he quickly reached into his bag and pulled out his camera and began to take photos of the spiders.
The other students dispersed and began taking a look at other parts of the exhibit. They had to write a paper on this when they were done. Jack took several photos of the blue rock before his attention returned to the spiders. He couldn't explain why, but he felt, drawn to them, like he had a connection with them. He was so focused on the fourteen that he missed the one that was dangling from its web and coming down to rest on him.
'I wonder how they'll plan to implement what they learn from the spiders?' Jack thought as he continued taking pictures. 'Maybe they'll cross certain genomes in the spider to give to humans so that we develop the self-healing factor. But if that works, I wonder what else would change. Would we develop 4 additional limbs? Grow fangs? Will girls eat their boyfriends? That last one sounds gro-' "OW!"
The sudden jolt of pain in his hand caused him to drop his camera and it shattered as it hit the floor. Most students turned to him and began laughing. He ignored them as he moved to see what hurt.
It looked what appeared to be a bug bite on his right hand, a pretty nasty one at that. How did he not notice? He then moved to pick up his camera as he heard the sound of something being squished under his feet. Slowly, filling with dread, he lifted his shoe to reveal what appeared to be the crushed remains of a spider.
'Oh no. Nononono.' Jack began to panic! He just stomped on one of the greatest scientific hopes of all time! If the scientist found out about this, he could be arrested and sent off to jail! Maybe? Probably? He didn't know, and he didn't want to find out!
Quickly cleaning up the murder, he then gathered the remains of his camera and left the gymnasium with the rest of his class. Unaware of the miracle happening in his body.
Present
"Soooo~ you used to wear glasses?"
Miko's sudden and off-topic questions brought him out of the memories and back into the present. Jack looked at her with a deadpan expression. "That's your takeaway?"
"Hey, I ain't never seen you in glasses so I wouldn't know," Miko said defensively.
"So it was a spider bite?" Raf said, remembering when Jack told the short version, the very short version.
"Yeah, I know. Believe me, I thought it was crazy, but it's true." Jack admitted.
"Do you happen to have any pictures of that mineral they injected the spiders with?" Optimus asked.
"Sure. My camera was destroyed but I managed to save the memory card. Why do ask?"
"I wish to confirm something," Optimus said cryptically. Jack just went along with it as he whipped out his phone and pulled up a picture of the rock. He showed it to Optimus who only took one glance before speaking. "I knew it."
"Knew what?" Jack asked, interested. Did Optimus know about the rock?
"That my boy is no mere glowing blue rock. That is Energon."
Jack's eyes widen at Optimus' declaration. Was that true? Did that mean he had alien lifeblood flowing threw his body? Did this mean he's an alien?!
"Wait, are you saying Jack's an alien?!" Miko yelled, her voice a mix of excitement and jealousy. She wanted to be an alien.
"No." Optimus' immediate rebuttal caused Jack to sigh in relief while Miko in disappointment. "But it is strange that you somehow survived."
That last word caught Jack's attention. "What do you mean 'survive'?"
Ratchet spoke up. "Based on our studies, we found any human exposed to Energon can have drastic if fatal consequences."
The humans' faces all went pale, Jack's being the most white.
"But you somehow managed to survive," Ratchet said, his interest peaked as he pulled what appeared to be a giant needle and began walking toward Jack. "I'll need to take a blood sample for further analysis."
Jack began to take several large steps back with his hands held out. Ratchet was then pulled back as Bulkhead and Bumblebee held him by the sides. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Calm down Ratchet! No need to scare the kid!" Bulkhead said.
Bumblebee trilled something out, which snapped Ratchet out of his mad scientist phase, and looked down at the human. "Apologise. I should have been more sensitive. It's just there's been no record of any other organism being able to have Energon run through their veins and to affect them like it has you, it was such an exciting reveal that I let myself get carried away. Forgive me."
Jack gave the ambulance robot a hard look. While he was slightly offended to be treated like a lab rat, he had to admit, he could understand Ratchet's fascination, being a person of science himself. "Water under the bridge. Just try asking for permission next time, okay Doc bot?"
"What bridge?" Ratchet asked, confused.
Jack rolled his eyes. "Figure of speech."
"Ahem." Optimus brought the attention back to him. "While I am glad there is no ill will between us due to what just happened, I think it would be best to get back to the topic at hand, as I feel there is more to the story." He looked to Jack for confirmation, who nodded. "Please continue."
"Well, nothing happened at first," Jack said, rubbing the back of his head. "I only started to feel sick after I got home. I went to bed before Mom got back without even having a chance to call and ask what to do." He then seemed hesitant to continue as he grew slightly pale. "Then I had this strange dream."
Flashback
He opened his eyes and saw he was standing on a metal surface. He looked around, his surroundings unfamiliar to him. "Where am I?" He asked aloud. He received no answer, not that he was expecting one.
He froze when all the hairs on his body felt they flared like goosebumps. A deafening ringing was going off in the base of his skull. Every instinct in his body was telling him to run! But he couldn't move, too frozen in fear! Fear of… he didn't know.
He then saw a large shadow loom over him. Turning around, he looked up to see a giant, covered in pure darkness, its head was crowned with horns. Dark purple storms surrounded the giant, giving it a menacing appearance, if he didn't already have one.
'Well, that explains it.' Jack thought, now knowing the source of the fear. A fear that grew when it's dark purple looked down at him, its gaze radiating pure evil. The ringing in his head, which was loud enough for a deaf man to hear, just got even louder. The giant raised its leg and took a step toward Jack. The teen did the only thing he could do: he ran.
And ran.
And ran.
And ran.
And suddenly pulled to a stop when he saw he was standing over a large well. Jack looked in amazement, the size of the circle was larger than Jasper's. He stopped admiring when he felt the ground shake and turned to see the giant looming over him. Jack weighed his options. He could try running around the circumference of the circle, but that would take too long. He could try running in between the giant's legs, but he didn't want to risk getting squished. He obviously couldn't jump down the well, that would be suicide.
Unfortunately, he didn't have a choice, as when the giant took another step the ground shook so hard that Jack lost his balance and fell into the well. Jack let out a terrified scream as he fell, trying to flap his hands fast enough in a vain attempt to fly, which didn't work.
He stopped screaming when nothing changed for a good long moment, simply content to keep falling into the abyss. At least that giant wasn't here.
After what felt like hours, something changed.
He began to see a bright blue-white light that seemed to be growing in size. The ringing in his head returned, but unlike before with the giant, whose presence made him feel a sense of fear unlike any he had before, this was the complete opposite. It was comforting. Warm. He felt safe, protected like he felt when usually in the presence of his mom.
There was a flash and suddenly, a rainbow of starlights shot out of the blue-white light. Jack, fearful, covered his face. However, as soon as a million streams of lights washed over him, he felt calm, at peace. He looked on in amazement as the lights moved around him and through him.
Strange, he almost felt a sense of companionship with these lights. In some way, he and they were the same. He felt strongly about that for one in particular. A bright red spark hovered in front of him, almost as if it was studying him. Jack couldn't explain, but he felt a similarity with this sparkling, more so than the others.
The red spark soon ascended upward, the rest soon followed until Jack was again left alone in the darkness. He continued to fall for some time before his back soon collided with something that stopped his fall. It was like he landed on a trampoline, the surface dipping before springing back up, unlike a trampoline, he was still stuck to the surface.
He took a moment to look at where he was and noticed it was a giant spider web. He tried to move, but like a fly, he was stuck. He lay there for a few moments before the ringing in his skull returned. And unlike with the giant or the bright light, this ringing made him feel a sense of kinship, more so than with those sparks, even the red one.
As the ringing got stronger, he soon had a sinking suspicion of what it was he was sensing. He got his confirmation when he saw a massive spider crawling its way toward him. Jack tried to move again, but like any good prey, he was stuck in the spider's web, and the large arachnid seemed to take pleasure in watching him struggle.
Eventually, he stopped moving as the spider's face loomed over him, it's eight eyes staring over his body. Jack felt like he was a chicken being judged on whether he was tender enough. He gulped nervously and gave a shaky smile as he stuttered a warning. "F-Fair warning, I-I'm not that tasty. I-I mean look at me, I don't have enough fat on me."
The spider didn't seem to mind as it began clicking its stingers and opened its mouth.
"WAH–"
"–HHHHHHHHHHH!"
Jack shot up, his shirtless upper body covered in a cold sweat. He was trembling. His skin was so pale it seemed like he was a ghost, and with how real that dream felt, he probably should. He took several deep breaths to calm his racing heart down.
When he finally did, he saw that he was in his room, safe and sound. He let out a sigh. Must've been a fever dream. His mom told him those could get crazy, but he never expected they could be that vivid and extreme, must've been some bite.
…Or maybe not?
After calming down, Jack took a moment to get a feel for his body. He thought he'd feel sick for days after a bite that bad. But he felt fine. Better than ever in fact. He felt like he could take on the universe.
He looked at his hand where the spider bite was, only to see there was no trace of it. He frowned, that wasn't normal. Bites, even from arachnids, don't heal that fast. "Weird," Jack muttered before he just shrugged and moved to get ready for school. He went over to the mirror, grabbed his glasses, and put them on when something weird happened.
His vision was blurry. He frowned. Usually, the blurriness went away when he put on his glasses. He took them off and was able to see as clearly as he could with them on, even better. He put them on, then took them off again. He did this several times before he finally stopped.
"Okay, weirder," Jack said. He needed glasses for as long as he could remember. So why the sudden perfect vision? Something weird was going on. Well, at least his mom wouldn't have to pay for any more broken glasses. He put the spectacles away and moved to grab a shirt when he saw something that caused his brain to momentarily shut down.
He had a six-pack. And honest to goodness six pack! And he had muscles training down his arms and his chest looked both toned and firm. Did he get taller too?! He began flexing a bit as he admired his muscles.
He couldn't help but smile and laugh in joy at his new appearance. He had no idea what was in that spider, but he wasn't complaining.
A knock on the door pulled him out of his thoughts. "Jack?" His mother called.
"Yeah Mom," Jack responded, still admiring his body.
"Are you okay? I heard screaming?"
"I'm fine Mom. Just a nightmare."
"Are you sure? It didn't look like you ate anything last night."
"I'm okay Mom. In fact," He paused as he looked down at his body, his smile widening even more, "I've never felt better."
"Well hurry up or you'll be late for school." His mom reminded him.
'School?' Jack thought before an idea came to him. For the longest time, he was at the bottom of the barrel, being the nerd and loser of the class. But now with this body. No more.
"Things are gonna be different now!" He said with determination as he moved to get ready.
Present
"Wait, you have a six-pack?" Miko asked, interrupting him again.
"Yes?" Jack said, looking at her. She studied his form for a moment, noting his clothes that almost looked too big for him. He had to buy a size larger than his ordinary self after his powers came in.
"I don't believe you." She said.
"Why would I lie?"
"Does a guy need a reason to lie about his muscles in front of a girl?" She asked, which caused him to shut up. She did have a point.
"What would it take to convince you?" He asked sarcastically. He was sure Miko wasn't going to answer–
"Show me?"
"What?"
He stared at her for a moment, wondering if he miss heard her.
"Show me your six back." She repeated. She then smirked. "Unless of course, you got something to hide?"
Jack gritted his teeth. He had learned a lot about self-control after getting his powers, but this girl. She just drove him up the wall.
"Fine." He groaned as he lifted his shirt, exposing his core to the girl. "There! Happy?"
He expected some sort of sarcastic reply or a satisfied nod, but what he got was a stunned expression. Miko's mouth was wide open as she stared at your stomach, eyes never leaving that solid core. Her face began to burn as her ears turned red. He soon began to mirror her as he let go of his shirt, covering the abs that Miko was still staring at.
As this was going on, Optimus was in deep thought, thinking about the dream Jack described. Those two at the beginning, the menacing giant and the comforting white light. Did he have a vision of them?
He shook his head, he could focus on that later. "What happened next?"
Both Jack and Miko calmed down as the latter turned away from the former, her face red. Jack merely scratched his head as he continued. "Well, I spent the next few days getting used to my powers. I kept accidentally breaking things with my super strength, thankfully my mom never found out. But then…" He trailed off as he suddenly seemed to clam up, looking nervous.
"But then what?" Arcee asked.
Jack was silent for a long time, his expression looking like a kid who got caught stealing a cookie from the jar. Finally, he blurted out, "I got into a fight!"
Flashback
The car was silent as mother and son drove through the town of Jasper back to the neighborhood. They hadn't spoken since June picked up Jack from school after he got detention. And why did he get detention you ask?
He got into a fight with Vince.
Though, a fight might be an exaggeration because Jack barely did anything before he sent Vince flying. He had dodged several punches that moved in slow motion and backflipped to dodge a tackle from behind. But he didn't hit Vince till he caught his fist then sent him flying back with one punch.
After that, Jack was given detention, and the school called his mother. When she arrived, she didn't say a thing to him, and neither did he to her, feeling the atmosphere was too tense to speak.
The drive back was even more unbearable. So much that he almost wished that the giant from his dream stomped on him for real, or that the spider ate him. At least he wouldn't have to deal with this.
Eventually, after what felt like an eternity, they finally arrived home and pulled into the driveway. Jack began to move to leave.
"Stay." His mother spoke for the first time. Despite it being one word, he could feel the emotion in her voice and did as commanded. They sat there in silence for a long moment, the only sound being the car engine.
He couldn't look her in the eyes. He didn't know what to say, but he knew he had to say something. "I–"
"That was the first time the school called me while at work." June's statement caused him to stop. "They knew I was busy as a nurse, so I told them never to call me unless it was an emergency. So when they finally did call me, do you know what my first thought was?"
"'Is Jack okay? Was he hurt?' Those were the questions running through my mind. Even more so when it was the nurse's office who answered. Do you know how shocked I was when I heard it was you who sent someone else to the nurse's office?"
"I thought it was some prank. But the school principal confirmed it. I had to leave work early so that I could pick you up, and during the whole drive, I asked myself one question: Why? Why would my baby boy do such a thing?"
June, who hadn't been looking at him the whole time she was speaking, turned towards him, a pleading, but firm look in her eyes. "Why?"
The use of his full name made it hurt all the more as he looked down in shame. "He was being a jerk." He muttered.
"And that gives you the right to get into a fight with him?"
"Hey! I didn't start that fight!" Jack suddenly yelled in anger.
"Don't you raise your voice at me, Jackson Darby!" The use of his full name caused him to clam up. He may have the proportionate strength of a spider, but he was still nervous around his mother. She then calmed down as she continued speaking. "You may not have started it, but you finished it."
"What was I supposed to do, run away?"
"Yes. Be the better man. Don't escalate the problem." June's look soon became dark as she whispered the next part. "That's just what your father would do."
That felt like a knife to Jack's heart.
His dad left him and his mom when he was six years old. Since then, Jack had always resented his father. He always hated it when his mom compared him to his dad. It made him feel sick to his stomach, more so than when that spider bit him.
June seemed to sense the dip in Jack's mood and looked down in shame. She knew that was a low blow. But that felt like the only way she could get her point across.
"Look, Jack, the point is, you're changing. Into the man I hope–I know you're going to be. But remember, just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should. With Great Power, there must also come Great Responsibility. Remember that, okay?"
Jack only nodded. June then sighed. "I have to go back to work. There should be some leftovers in the fridge."
"Okay," Jack muttered, taking that as his cue to step out. As he shut the door, the car pulled out of the driveway. His mother waved at him as he waved back before driving off. When she was gone, he looked down at his hand with a shameful look.
She was right. She was absolutely right. How could he have been so stupid? Getting in trouble like this was the last thing his mom needed. She's working hard enough as is to provide for both of them. And he does something like this?
'Yeah, a real son of the year material there Jack.' He thought.
He couldn't let this happen again. To do that, he needed to learn more about these powers, enough that when he ever found himself in another situation like that, he could just use them to walk away. He didn't want to cause any more trouble for her. It's as she said, just because he can do something doesn't mean he should.
"With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility."
Present
"Over the summer I spent time getting a part-time job and learned as much about my powers as I could. I learned I could cloak, stick to walls, create electricity in my hands, etc. I didn't do anything big with them because I wanted to keep it all a secret. I also built my web shooters using the money from my part-time job. I don't know the full reason why, just that I felt this urge to build them. Does that make sense?" Jack asked. He got various looks from his human companions and the Autobots. "Anyway, that's my story. Hope that satisfy's you guys."
"Indeed it does. Thank you for sharing it with us Jack." Optimus thanked him sincerely.
"Ah don't mention it. To tell you the truth, it feels like a weight has been lifted off me. Nice to finally share this with someone else." Jack admitted, and honestly, it did feel good to share this with other people. For a long time, he kept this secret bottled up inside him. So to finally let it out was like a breath of fresh air.
"So let me get this straight," Miko spoke up. "You got bit by a spider juiced with alien blood, got all these powers along with an, admittedly, amazing bod, built your own spider webs, so glad those don't come out of you by the way, and you do NOTHING with them?!"
The volume of her voice took him aback. "Uhh, yeah that pretty much sums it up."
"Are you an idiot?!" Miko screamed again. Seriously what is with this girl? "Forget being a fry cook or a scientist, you could be a full-blown superhero, and you do nothing?! What is wrong with you?!"
Jack frowned. "What's wrong with wanting to be normal?! I can't cause problems for my mom, not when she's working so hard for us."
"Just because you're using your powers doesn't mean you're causing your mom problems," Miko stated.
"She has a point," Raf said. "I mean, if you hadn't used your powers when that Decepticon cornered us, we would have been dead. And that didn't cause problems for anyone."
Jack sighed. "Look, that was an extreme situation that required me to use my powers. I won't be doing that again if I can help it. I can't get involved in something like this or else my mom would worry."
"A noble sentiment Jack," Optimus spoke up, "However I fear you may not have much of a choice."
"What do you mean?" Raf asked.
"Given that you know of our existence, the Decepticons clearly know of yours, especially since you killed one." He said more to Jack than the others.
"Got it, see any strange black cars that want to kill us call the bat phone." He joked before gesturing to the exit. "Can we go now?"
"Are you insane?" Miko repeated. "Look what you decide to do with your sweet powers is up to you, but I am living a dream here in 'bot'-swana. And I will not allow you or anyone else to shatter it!"
Jack back up. Man was this girl feisty.
"It is best that you three remain under our watch. At least until we can discern our enemies' intention," Optimus advised something that Ratchet appears opposed to.
"Optimus, with all due respect, the human children are as in far danger here as anywhere."
"'Children'?" Jack repeated, clearly offended along with Miko and Raf.
"They have no protective shell!" Ratchet continued, having not heard or cared what Jack said. "If they get under foot they will go… squish." He emphasized his point by taking a step with his foot causing the kids to step back. Maybe Jack could survive, but they didn't know the limits of his durability or if he could even lift them.
"Then, for the time being, Ratchet, we must watch where we step," Optimus explained, knowing his long-time friend was mostly concerned about people invading his workspace, but still concerned all the same
BREE! BREE!
Suddenly, an alarm flashed through the base as green lights flashed all around them. The bots seemed to know the answer, but it flew over the humans' heads so Jack asked the obvious, "What's that?"
Bumblebee buzzed out a response Jack and Miko couldn't understand. Thankfully Raf did.
"Proximity sensor." He explained before pointing to the roof. "Someone's up top."
Ratchet pulled up a screen on the large green monitors and a video of a helicopter landing appeared. "It's Agent Fowler." He said, from the tone of his voice, it sounded like they knew this guy.
"I-I thought we were the only humans who knew about you guys." Somehow, that made Jack even more nervous. If more people knew about them, does that mean they would know about him?
"Special Agent Fowler is our designated liaison to the outside world," Optimus explained as he turned to face them. "As he tends to visit only when there are issues, it may be best that you do not meet him at this time."
'No argument here.' Jack thought to himself. If this guy was really from the government, Jack did not want to be found out. Or else they may take him to be dissected. The others had similar thoughts, maybe not about dissection as they all moved to hide, Jack was even tempted to activate his camouflage ability.
What followed was a tense meeting between a man of African American descent, who they assumed to be Agent Fowler, and Optimus. They argued about the chase last night, whether or not the military needed to take action, Optimus assuring the agent they were the best defense against the Decepticons, Bulkhead breaking something with Ratchet yelling "I needed that!" Jack and the others had to stop themselves from laughing.
Eventually, Fowler left, and it looked like he didn't spot them. However, something Bulkhead said before breaking Ratchet's tool stuck with him. When to use power, and how much. For some reason, that resonated with him as he looked toward his hand.
After several more hours of questions and answers, Jack letting Ratchet take a blood sample to study how the Energon interacted with his body, an alert went off.
Someone name Cliffjumper, who everyone thought was dead, was alive, or at least seemed to be. Ratchet believed it to be nothing more than a bug due to Earth tech. However, Arcee seemed determined to see if there was a small chance this Cliffjumper was alive, a sentiment Optimus shared as he soon ordered for the Autobots, beside Ratchet to roll out (catchy catchphrase).
"What can we do?" Miko asked excitedly, hoping to be included.
Optimus looked at her for a moment, then at Jack, contemplating on something for a moment before saying, "Remain with Ratchet."
"Aw," Miko whined.
"Aw." Ratchet also whined causing Jack to look at him with an offended look. Seriously, does he hate them that much?
Soon enough the Autobots all transformed and drove into the ringed tunnel as it suddenly became a green swirling vortex. Then, they disappeared.
"What just happened?!" Jack asked in shock as he and the others looked over the edge of the railings down the tunnel.
"I transported them to the coordinates via the Groundbridge," Ratchet answered as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
'We don't know what that is?!' Jack thought.
"What's a Groundbridge?" Raf asked.
Ratchet sighed. Seems like he would need to explain this. "A scaled-down version of space bridge technology. Since we don't have the means or Energon required for intergalactic travel…" He trailed off.
"You're stuck here," Jack finished, his tone filled with sympathy, "On Earth."
"With the likes of you, yes," Ratchet said as he glared at Jack before his voice began to fill with pride. "But I constructed the Groundbridge to transport anyone from here, to anywhere on your planet."
"Does it work for humans?" Raf asked.
"Naturally."
"You mean I could just zoom on over and visit my parents in Tokyo?" Miko asked.
"Yes, in fact, allow me to send you there now. All three of you." Man, he was trying to get rid of them.
"Watch it Ratchet," Miko warned which caused the Bot to flinch. Jack whistled. He had to admit, seeing her being all feisty and not having it aimed at him, it was attractive. He shook his head. 'Get those thoughts out of your mind!' Jack told himself as he looked back to the portal.
"Maybe I could take this to New York one day," Jack muttered. Ever since he got his powers, it's been a dream of his to go to New York and swing through the concrete jungle. He didn't know why he just, felt this urge to do it.
Maybe one day.
Time passed, and eventually, they received a communication from Optimus, his voice sounding frantic. "Ratchet, bridge us back! Use the arrival coordinates now!" Ratchet obeyed without question as he flipped the switch and the portal opened.
The humans turned down to see the four Autobots with what appeared to be a blue explosion trailing behind them. As soon as they entered, Ratchet then closed the portal. Optimus was the last one through, transformed and flipped out of the way of the explosion, and landed like a superhero into the base.
"Whoa/Wow." the humans muttered in awe. 'Okay, that was pretty cool!' Jack thought as he looked at the Prime in awe.
"Cutting it a bit close. How about Cliffjumper?" Ratchet asked. The mood had instantly taken a dive after he asked that question, something Miko didn't pick up on.
"What was that huge explosion? Was there a fight? Can I come with you next time?!"
Jack gave her a side-eye. 'Read the room!' He then saw that Arcee growled before she glared at the girl. Acting fast, Jack took Miko by the shoulders, "H-Hey Miko! Why don't we see what the bots hide in their sock drawers?" He suggested, coming up with the first thing that came to mind.
"Seriously? That's the best you could come up with? Sock Drawers?" She deadpanned.
"What did you want me to say? Besides, I just saved your life! You should be thanking me!" Jack argued.
"Saving someone? Sounds pretty heroic for someone not wanting to be a superhero." Miko teased with a sly grin.
Jack was about to respond when they suddenly saw Arcee collapse, holding onto a container to steady herself. Bumblebee buzzed what sounded like concern. "I'm fine!" She assured them. "Just dizzy."
That last comment caught them all off guard.
"Robots who get dizzy?" Miko questioned.
"Robots with emotion?" Raf continued.
"Robots… who can die?" Jack finished, his face flashing with horror. He looked down at his hands in thought. If these robots were indeed alive, did that mean that Con he killed, was a living person?
Moments later, Ratchet was scanning over Arcee. He stopped when it looked like he picked up something that shouldn't be there. Jack soon caught a glance at a dark liquid. As soon as he saw it, his spider sense went off in a way that was similar to when he saw that giant in his dream. That sent a chill running up his spine.
After Ratchet told Arcee to take a decontamination bath, Jack decided to broach a subject with Optimus that had been bothering him for a while.
"O-Optimus, I-I hate to bug, but no bars." Jack pointed out as he held out his phone to show proof. He felt like a jerk. Here the Autobots had lost what seemed to be a close comrade and friend, and he was concerned about the Wi-Fi. Made him seem like that stereotypical teen whose obsessed with their own devices.
"A security precaution," Optimus explained, not appearing to be offended by Jack's question. "The silo walls isolate all radio waves."
That explains it. Still, that left him with a big problem. "Well, if I don't call my mom, like, now, I'm pretty sure the cops will be out looking for me."
"Have you broken a law?" Optimus asked. If Jack was offended by such a question, he didn't show it.
"Uh, curfew." He explained, feeling even more lame than before. "It's after 10 pm."
"You even follow a curfew? What kind of superhero are you anyway?" Miko asked.
"The 'I'm not a superhero' kind," Jack grumbled.
"I better get home too, or I'll be grounded for a year," Raf spoke up, now realizing how late he stayed out.
"Earth customs, I hadn't considered," Optimus said in understanding.
"Can't blame you, I mean, it's not like you guys have parents right? Do you?" Jack's joke turned into a genuine question.
"No, we do not," Optimus answered, not getting the joke. "But the issue of your safety still remains. Bulkhead," He turned to the green Autobot, "Accompany Miko home."
"Awesome!" Miko cheered in excitement. "My host parents will freak!" Her excitement died after Optimus continued.
"And maintain covert surveillance in vehicle form," Optimus ordered.
"Curbside duty got it." Bulkhead nodded in understanding.
"Aw!" Miko whined.
Optimus ignored her complaining as he then turned to another bot. "Bumblebee, you'll watch over Raf." The bot looked at Raf, who smile.
It made sense to Jack, cause for some reason, Raf seemed to be the only one who understood Bumblebee, so it worked. But, that left him with…
"Ratchet."
"Busy." The Doc Bot said, causing Jack to sigh in relief. He really didn't want a grump watching over him. But then he was stuck with…
"Arcee," Optimus said as she emerged from her decontamination bath, "You'll accompany Jack."
Jack visibly flinched at the name of his assigned guardian. While it wasn't as bad as Ratchet, he still wasn't looking forward to this, mainly because it seemed like Arcee didn't like him much, or at all. But he couldn't exactly figure out why. It may have been because he started touching her in her vehicle form without permission or something, but it felt deeper than that. Like she had some sort of deep personal hatred for him, or at least, an aspect of him.
'Still, she was supposed to be a professional soldier so it shouldn't be too much trouble, right?' Jack hoped as he scratched the back of his head.
"Ugh, still dizzy," Arcee said, trying her best to appear unable to do her assignment.
"You're fine, says your physician," Ratchet assured her, ratting her out in the process. She sighed as she moved to go.
Jack slumped his shoulder in defeat. 'Darby Luck, you strike again.'
As he waited for Arcee to get ready, Jack stood off to the side, wondering how he got himself involved in this.
"Jack"
Hearing his name be called, Jack turned to see Optimus walking towards him. He straightened his body almost immediately. There was something about this bot that made him want to act his best in front of him.
"Hey Optimus, what do you need? If it's a threat to hunt me down should I tell anyone, don't worry, Arcee already gave me the warning." Jack joked.
However, his joke caused Optimus to sigh. "I apologize for how she has acted towards you Jack. She is one of my most loyal and driven soldiers. At times it can be both a blessing and a curse. I know it may be too much, but may I ask you to please be patient with her? I believe that with time, she will come around to you."
Jack thought about it for a moment. While he was annoyed that Arcee had been particularly angry at him, he couldn't deny that she worked to save his life. And that fact they got off on the wrong foot was more his fault than hers, so he couldn't blame her.
"Sure thing Optimus." Jack agreed, causing the leader to smile. "Is that all?"
"No," Optimus said. "I wanted to ask you something, about the phrase your mother said to you when you recounted your story. 'With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility'."
"What about it?" Jack asked. Why would Optimus want to know about something his mom once said?
"In all my life, I had never heard such a phrase such as this. It is a simple saying, but contains so much wisdom that if understood, could change a person's way of life completely." Optimus praised.
"Yeah, I try to do my best to follow it by staying out of trouble. Though getting involved with alien robots along with spider powers hasn't made it any easier." Jack said with a sigh.
"And that is another thing I wanted to talk with you about," Optimus said, making Jack look at him. "I fear you may be looking at the phrase in the wrong way."
"What?" Jack asked, his eyes narrowed.
"Please understand, I mean no offense to you or your mother. But I feel I need to say this." Optimus said. "You believe it means that despite the power you hold, you should stay away from conflict or trouble when the opposite could be just as true, if not more so."
Jack frowned as he thought about it for a moment. Optimus had a point. For a long time he thought that despite having these powers, he shouldn't involve himself in dangerous situations. But could that thinking be wrong? Should he get involved in dangerous situations because he has these powers?
Seeing that Jack was in deep thought, Optimus spoke up. "You do not need to make a decision now. I merely advise you to think it over for a while before you come to a decision."
With that, Optimus walked away, leaving Jack to stew over his words.
The drive back home was silent, with Jack only speaking up to give directions. It was tense, also as much as it was with his mom after he got into that fight with Vince months ago. Eventually, they arrived at his house and entered the garage.
As he stepped off the Autobot, Jack felt compelled to say something, to offer some sort of condolence for the clearly grieving robot. "Arcee, I just wanted to say…" He stuttered as he tried to come up with something to say. What could he say? He didn't know Cliffjumper. He barely knew her. But eventually, he just settled on. "I'm really sorry for your loss."
"What could you possibly know about loss, arachnid?" Her question was like a sharp knife in his heart. But she wasn't exactly wrong. He hasn't lost anything, except his dad, but that was different. Still, he was just trying to help, no need for her to react with such venom.
"What, you think you're the only one with problems?" Jack fired back, hands on his hips.
Arcee suddenly transformed and glared down at him. "I'm not sure girl trouble counts."
Jack scoffed. "It's not just girls! I also have–"
"Yeah, yeah, you're disgusting powers. I know." She said, the venom in her voice clear to see. Jack blinked. Was that what was bothering her? His powers? But if so, then why?
Before they could say anything else, they heard a car pulling up to the house. They both panicked but for different reasons.
"Cons!" Arcee said as she brought up her blasters at the car.
"No! Mom." Jack yelled, waving for her to stand down as he rushed out to meet her.
The car pulled to a stop and his mother got out. "Jack?"
"Mom!" He ran up to her. "Don't–Don't freak! I can explain." 'How the heck do I explain a giant robot that can transform into a car?!' Jack thought as his Mom looked at him, disapproval on her face.
"Can you?" June said as she walked passed him to stand next to the Autobot, who thankfully managed to transform before his mom could see. "Jackson Darby we talked about this."
Jack sighed in both relief and annoyance. Great he was getting this talk again. "Yeah, I know and–"
"You don't know." His mother cut him off sternly as she walked back to him. "I worry about you enough when you're not here, especially after that fight. Now I have to worry about you driving a motorcycle?"
"I'm 16. I can't be riding at 10-speed forever." He argued as he walked past her.
"How did you even afford this?" June asked. Could fry cooks really pay for a bike like this?
"Uh," Crap, he hadn't thought about how to explain this, "I-It's used. It's abused really, it needs a ton of repairs." Hopefully, she buys that. "But the point is…"
He moved over to the workbench which housed his chemistry equipment for his web-shooters and placed a hand on a helmet that hadn't been used since he first bought it. "I may have been a kid when I bought this." He said, gesturing to the helmet. "But I'm not anymore. You always tell me 'With Great Power comes Great Responsibility'. Well, I-I used my power of agency to choose her." He pointed to Arcee as mother and son hovered next to the bike.
"And I'll be responsible. I promise." He will. Or at least, he'll do his best.
"'Her'?" His mother questioned with a sly smile. "I didn't think you'd be bringing girls home just yet."
"I'd like to think she brought me," Jack said, being as honest as he could. June sighed
"Well, I'm glad you finally have a reason to wear your helmet, every single time you ride!" She emphasized the last part. She then became shy as she asked, "You will take me for a spin every once in a while, right?" Riding on the back of her ex-husband's motorcycle was one of her favorite things to do when they first started dating.
"We'll see," Jack said as he turned back to Acree, "She's kinda temperamental." He said before turning off the light and shutting the door.
As she was left alone in the garage, Arcee sighed. Why was she acting like this? Jack hadn't done anything wrong. So why was she being so difficult with him?
That was a rhetorical question. She knew why. It's because his powers remind her too much of her. She knew they weren't the same, but it seemed to be hard to separate them from her spark.
Maybe one day she would come to see them as two separate people. But for now, she just had to hope he wouldn't grow to hate her until then.
A/N: How'd you guys enjoy that? I hope you all like how I did the spider bite, and that I made it Energon instead of radiation.
I hope I also did a good job with Jack's character. Because at this point in canon, Jack was hesitant to get himself involved with the Autobots, and I wanted to mirror that here, despite him having powers, and as a way to separate him from Peter Parker, who at first wanted to use his powers to be popular but then used them to help however he could. Eventually, Jack will reach that stage. I thought about having his dad die because he didn't use his powers to stop a criminal, but that seem too cliche. Then I came up with a better idea!
After little thought, I think I'm gonna give Jack the suit from Spectacular Spider-Man. Then in season 2 Marvel's Spider-Man 2 suit, with all the upgrades. Season 3 would be the Iron Spider.
Here's the preview. I know its a lame summary.
Spider's Rising Part Three:
When Miko gets herself into trouble, Jack and Raf go to save her.